Appointments

Emergency Appointments

All urgent requests for appointments are triaged the same day by telephone. We do not offer a walk-in service. An on-call duty doctor and an advanced nurse practitioner will be available for advice and appointments. Urgent requests are managed jointly between our two surgeries and you may be offered an appointment at either surgery.

Your initial call will be taken by a trained non-clinical member of staff with whom your emergency request can be made. So that your problem can be dealt with appropriately, the receptionist may ask you some questions about your symptoms and degree of urgency. You will then be called back by the nurse practitioner or doctor.

If you need to be seen by a clinician you may be offered an appointment with a doctor at a Choice Plus clinic. Only certain types of medical problems are suitable for the Choice Plus clinic, as detailed in the guide below. Our receptionists will be able to give you advice about this when you call the surgery. You can choose an appointment at a Choice Plus clinic elsewhere in Gloucestershire if this is convenient for you.

Our emergency service operates from 08:30 until 18:30, Monday to Friday. Outside these hours we advise patients to contact the Cheltenham Out-Of-Hours GP service on 0300 421 0220

Patients requiring advice may also call NHS 111. The service can be accessed by dialling 111. Calls to 111 are free from both landlines and mobiles.

For any acute emergencies dial 999.

Routine Appointments

Routine pre-booked appointments are available during morning surgery which runs from 08:50 until 11:50 and during afternoon surgery which runs from 15:50 until 17:50. Monday to Friday.

Routine appointments with a doctor are limited to 10 minutes each to discuss a single non-urgent concern, or to review an ongoing problem. If you wish to discuss complex or multiple concerns please request a longer appointment when booking.

As all doctors work between both sites, your registered doctor may not always be available at your usual surgery. You are able to book with any of our doctors as your medical records are all computerised and accessible by any health professional at the Practice. However, if possible, it is preferable for you to try to see the same doctor whilst dealing with a specific problem.

On the day appointments

In order to try to improve access to an appointment on the day for problems which cannot wait for the next routine appointment, we are providing a limited number of appointments with the doctors for booking 'on the day'. Please telephone as soon as possible after 8.30am and we will do our best to offer you one of these appointments.

Improving access to general practice: evening and weekend appointments now available

Patients who are registered at Portland Practice and Hatherley Branch can now book an appointment to see a GP or nurse on weekday evenings (after 6.30pm) or at the weekends (on Saturday and Sunday). Appointments will take place at St Catherine’s Practice in St Paul’s Medical Centre. Talk to the practice receptionist to find out more or book an appointment.

By March 2019 everyone in England will benefit from access to general practice appointments in the evenings and weekends at a time that is most convenient to them. This is part of a national drive to help improve access to general practice and get the best possible outcomes for patients. Further information is available at www.england.nhs.uk/gpaccess

Extended Hours

We offer ‘Extended Hours’ appointments which are held at the Hatherley Surgery on two Saturday mornings per month, between 08:15 and 11:00. During these times we can only offer routine appointments.

During the above times emergency appointment requests will be directed to the Out of Hours service. There is also no facility to process repeat medications or telephone consultations during these times.

Telephone consultations

All doctors are available to discuss non-urgent concerns by telephone. These appointments are for 5 minutes each and may be booked through reception. Please give brief details to the receptionist and the doctor will call you back, usually before morning surgery. It is not always possible to give an accurate time for these appointments, however the doctors always try to call within the given window.

Chaperone Policy

All patients are entitled to have a chaperone present during their consultation or procedure if they wish. Please inform Reception that you would like a chaperone when you book your appointment, or ask the doctor or nurse during the consultation.

A leaflet explaining how our appointment system works can be found here

Home Visits

Requests for home visits should reach the surgery before 10.00am if possible and are usually assessed on the phone by a Doctor. Please note that home visits are reserved for patients who are truly housebound on medical grounds only. Home visits are allocated between the doctors working on the day and are usually carried out between 13:00 and 15:00.

Urgent home visit requests must be discussed with the on-call nurse or duty doctor.

We encourage patients to make their best efforts to attend the Surgery to make effective use of the doctors’ or nurses’ time and practice resources.

Telephone Advice

All doctors are available to discuss non-urgent concerns by telephone. Telephone appointments must be booked in advance. To book please call reception, give brief details and your telephone number and the doctor will call you back usually before morning surgery. It is not always possible to give an accurate time for these appointments.

Sickness Certificates

You do not require a doctor's sickness certificate for any illness lasting seven days or less. Your employer may however require you to complete a self-certification form (SC2) which is available from your employer or on the HMRC website.

Evidence that you are sick

If you are sick for more than seven days, your employer can ask you to give them some form of medical evidence to support payment of SSP (statutory sick pay).

It is up to your employer to decide whether you are incapable of work. A medical certificate, now called a 'Statement of Fitness for Work’ (see below) from your doctor is strong evidence that you are sick and would normally be accepted, unless there is evidence to prove otherwise.

You could also provide evidence from someone who is not a medical practitioner, e.g. a dentist. Your employer will decide whether or not this evidence is acceptable. If your employer has any doubts, they may still ask for a medical certificate from your GP.

Statement of Fitness for Work - ’Fit Note'

The 'fit note' was introduced on 6 April 2010. With your employer's support, the note will help you return to work sooner by providing more information about the effects of your illness or injury.

GP Training

We are a training practice and will often have a qualified doctor who is training to become a GP working along side us. The doctor in training is called a GP Registrar. He/she will have access to your computerised records and will often discuss clinical concerns with one of the other doctors. As part of the training process your consultation maybe be video recorded – you will be informed of this prior to your appointment and be asked to sign a consent form. You also have the option to decline video recording.

Occasionally we may also have medical students at the surgery. They will usually be observing a doctor or nurse in practice. You will be informed of this prior to your appointment.